Status: Rated PG for a swear word.
At the Rock Show.
Chapter One.
“Little girl
You like it loud
Come alive in the middle of a crowd
You wanna scream
You wanna shout
Get excited when the lights go down”
I will never forget the rush of excitement that runs around any venue as people pile in through the doors, taking their position on the floor, or their seats in the sides. We are all the same in here, no-one is judged for what they are wearing, what job they do or who their idol is; we are all here for one reason, and that reason is only a few meters away from us behind the black stage curtains. It may seem strange to outsiders, but venues like this are the one place in the world that I feel safe and accepted; the one place that I don’t have to pretend who I am and act like someone I’m not; the only place where any of us can truly come alive.
The lights go down and the first band comes onto the stage in all their glory. They each take their places; picking up their instruments and getting into position. The singer picks up their mic’ and shouts out to the crowd and we return it just as loud all swaying as we are pushed further towards the front, needing to be as close as possible, feeling ourselves been drawn in as the first chords sound through the huge speakers and the drum beat kicks in. It’s as intoxicating as any drug and I can feel my head start to cloud as I and the rest of the crowd begin to dance along in time with song singing every word back at the singer, every single one of us joining in with the ‘oo’ing and crazy dance moves the singer demonstrates to us.
Between songs they’ll have us crouch down and jump up in time with the drum, turn to the outside and give them the finger while they return it back to us, and we never think to question why, just do it to be one with the band, one with each other and the music we love.
“At the rock show
You'll be right in the front row
Heart and soul, they both know
It’s where you gotta be”
There is nowhere else I’d rather be right now that crushed in the huge crowd surrounding me, swaying back and forth, jumping up and down, fist-pumping the air and throwing our heads around as the music commands us to do. We turn to one another and grin as a silent way of making a bond, fan-to-fan, freak-to-freak, heart-to-heart.
“Little girl, there you are
All the lighters looking just like stars
Sing along, feel the sound
Take a ride on the hands of the crowd
Here it comes, the moment when
You know you’ll never be the same again
Power chord, see the light
You found your place in the world tonight”
The melodies take over and we are thrown into a power ballad to end all ballads. Everyone takes out a lighter, a phone, a glowstick, whatever they have to wave in time to the music, gripping tightly to their loved ones and the harsh moshing that has been going on ceases, slowing into a gentle sway resembling a calm sea lapping at the evening shore. I love to look out across the arena at the thousands of lights dotted around. Something about the sight of it is far more beautiful to me than any midnight sky I’ve seen. These lights show love, unity and peace that can never be replicated.
Not one voice is silent among the thousands of swaying fans as we sing back to the band, showing our belief in them, in the words we sing. It really is overwhelming. Amazing. After what seems like hours of merciless passion, but could have only been a few minutes the mood changes again and the pit gets crazy. Mosh pits brake out in circles around me, people throwing themselves to the music; but if anyone falls, we pick them up, it’s the rules, like the singer says, this is our family right here, right now, united by our love for this sound; we gotta take care of one-another. People jump into the arms of others being passed around the arena overhead, everything grasping to make sure they don’t fall. Balloons and blown up condoms dance over us too, and we leap to keep them from touching the floor like children at a some kind of fucked-up birthday party.
Until I’d been to my first concert I’d been lonely, unsure of who I was and scared of being it. The first time I stood in a line with hundreds of other people all strangers chatting and sharing their excitement I knew I was on to something and when the room went black and the noise went wild that was it, I’d found my place. It was right here amongst everyone else, my music-loving family.
“At the rock show
You'll be right in the front row
Heart and soul, they both know
It's where we gotta be
Yeah at the rock show
Getting high on the solo
So what if it’s crazy?
That's gonna be me”
My friends said I was crazy, camping in the rain for 5 days for three days of music at a festival, waiting in the freezing cold for hours on end to be as close to the front as possible at gigs; spending every penny I earned, or using every bit of birthday or Christmas money to buy tickets and band merch; being crushed into a hot, sweaty, smelly, crowd for hours with only a waft of air conditioning flying over us every now and again; we all move as one as we throw our heads back, rising to catch what bit of it we can, knowing it won’t last for long. But what did they know? They’d never experienced the thrill and the high that events like this could give, more fool them, they were missing out!
“This goes out to anyone one
Whose heart beats like a kick drum
When a bitchin' riff comes
Knows the words to every line, every time
And you know you gotta go get some, get pumped
Find yourself and lose it”
As your heart and head begin to pound in time to the drum beat, a tingle of electricity runs up and down your spine as the guitarists shred the solo and the words you hear make more and more sense each time you hear them and they become the words you live by, your heart will begin to ache, it’s only normal, your finally home again.
“So what if it’s crazy?
It’s where we gotta be
At the rock show”
Yes, I’ll never forget the rush of excitement that runs through the crowd as people pile as we wait for the show to start, as the lights go down and the first notes sounds vibrate around any venue. It’s like nothing else I’ve experienced and it made me come to terms with who I was and what I wanted to be.
I stand behind the curtains, peeking out at the crowd as my nervousness builds seeing the thousands of people buzzing back at me. The venue goes black and it’s time. We make our way onto the stage through the screams and shouts of excitement and I pick up my mic’ as the spotlights hit us in their overwhelming beam of heat. I look out as far as I can see taking in the scent of the room, the faces of our fans looking up at us, their eyes filled with hope, love and awe, everything I’ve felt a thousand times before. I take a deep breath… It’s show time.
“One, two, one, two, three, four!”
You like it loud
Come alive in the middle of a crowd
You wanna scream
You wanna shout
Get excited when the lights go down”
I will never forget the rush of excitement that runs around any venue as people pile in through the doors, taking their position on the floor, or their seats in the sides. We are all the same in here, no-one is judged for what they are wearing, what job they do or who their idol is; we are all here for one reason, and that reason is only a few meters away from us behind the black stage curtains. It may seem strange to outsiders, but venues like this are the one place in the world that I feel safe and accepted; the one place that I don’t have to pretend who I am and act like someone I’m not; the only place where any of us can truly come alive.
The lights go down and the first band comes onto the stage in all their glory. They each take their places; picking up their instruments and getting into position. The singer picks up their mic’ and shouts out to the crowd and we return it just as loud all swaying as we are pushed further towards the front, needing to be as close as possible, feeling ourselves been drawn in as the first chords sound through the huge speakers and the drum beat kicks in. It’s as intoxicating as any drug and I can feel my head start to cloud as I and the rest of the crowd begin to dance along in time with song singing every word back at the singer, every single one of us joining in with the ‘oo’ing and crazy dance moves the singer demonstrates to us.
Between songs they’ll have us crouch down and jump up in time with the drum, turn to the outside and give them the finger while they return it back to us, and we never think to question why, just do it to be one with the band, one with each other and the music we love.
“At the rock show
You'll be right in the front row
Heart and soul, they both know
It’s where you gotta be”
There is nowhere else I’d rather be right now that crushed in the huge crowd surrounding me, swaying back and forth, jumping up and down, fist-pumping the air and throwing our heads around as the music commands us to do. We turn to one another and grin as a silent way of making a bond, fan-to-fan, freak-to-freak, heart-to-heart.
“Little girl, there you are
All the lighters looking just like stars
Sing along, feel the sound
Take a ride on the hands of the crowd
Here it comes, the moment when
You know you’ll never be the same again
Power chord, see the light
You found your place in the world tonight”
The melodies take over and we are thrown into a power ballad to end all ballads. Everyone takes out a lighter, a phone, a glowstick, whatever they have to wave in time to the music, gripping tightly to their loved ones and the harsh moshing that has been going on ceases, slowing into a gentle sway resembling a calm sea lapping at the evening shore. I love to look out across the arena at the thousands of lights dotted around. Something about the sight of it is far more beautiful to me than any midnight sky I’ve seen. These lights show love, unity and peace that can never be replicated.
Not one voice is silent among the thousands of swaying fans as we sing back to the band, showing our belief in them, in the words we sing. It really is overwhelming. Amazing. After what seems like hours of merciless passion, but could have only been a few minutes the mood changes again and the pit gets crazy. Mosh pits brake out in circles around me, people throwing themselves to the music; but if anyone falls, we pick them up, it’s the rules, like the singer says, this is our family right here, right now, united by our love for this sound; we gotta take care of one-another. People jump into the arms of others being passed around the arena overhead, everything grasping to make sure they don’t fall. Balloons and blown up condoms dance over us too, and we leap to keep them from touching the floor like children at a some kind of fucked-up birthday party.
Until I’d been to my first concert I’d been lonely, unsure of who I was and scared of being it. The first time I stood in a line with hundreds of other people all strangers chatting and sharing their excitement I knew I was on to something and when the room went black and the noise went wild that was it, I’d found my place. It was right here amongst everyone else, my music-loving family.
“At the rock show
You'll be right in the front row
Heart and soul, they both know
It's where we gotta be
Yeah at the rock show
Getting high on the solo
So what if it’s crazy?
That's gonna be me”
My friends said I was crazy, camping in the rain for 5 days for three days of music at a festival, waiting in the freezing cold for hours on end to be as close to the front as possible at gigs; spending every penny I earned, or using every bit of birthday or Christmas money to buy tickets and band merch; being crushed into a hot, sweaty, smelly, crowd for hours with only a waft of air conditioning flying over us every now and again; we all move as one as we throw our heads back, rising to catch what bit of it we can, knowing it won’t last for long. But what did they know? They’d never experienced the thrill and the high that events like this could give, more fool them, they were missing out!
“This goes out to anyone one
Whose heart beats like a kick drum
When a bitchin' riff comes
Knows the words to every line, every time
And you know you gotta go get some, get pumped
Find yourself and lose it”
As your heart and head begin to pound in time to the drum beat, a tingle of electricity runs up and down your spine as the guitarists shred the solo and the words you hear make more and more sense each time you hear them and they become the words you live by, your heart will begin to ache, it’s only normal, your finally home again.
“So what if it’s crazy?
It’s where we gotta be
At the rock show”
Yes, I’ll never forget the rush of excitement that runs through the crowd as people pile as we wait for the show to start, as the lights go down and the first notes sounds vibrate around any venue. It’s like nothing else I’ve experienced and it made me come to terms with who I was and what I wanted to be.
I stand behind the curtains, peeking out at the crowd as my nervousness builds seeing the thousands of people buzzing back at me. The venue goes black and it’s time. We make our way onto the stage through the screams and shouts of excitement and I pick up my mic’ as the spotlights hit us in their overwhelming beam of heat. I look out as far as I can see taking in the scent of the room, the faces of our fans looking up at us, their eyes filled with hope, love and awe, everything I’ve felt a thousand times before. I take a deep breath… It’s show time.
“One, two, one, two, three, four!”
♠ ♠ ♠
Got the writing bug atm, let me know what you think, want to start writing more!! :)